Art Department to spotlight ‘Landscape and Reclamation’

September 6, 2011 | Arts, UToday
By Angela Riddel



The University of Toledo Department of Art will host three artists in a series of exhibitions and events exploring “Landscape and Reclamation.”

Three exhibits open Tuesday, Sept. 6, and run through Saturday, Oct. 22. They are:

• “Destruction Layer: Photographs From Israel” by Deborah Bright in the Center for the Visual Arts Gallery on the Toledo Museum of Art Campus. The gallery is open Monday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.

The internationally recognized artist will present works from an ongoing series exploring the Israeli landscape. Since 2005, Bright has researched and photographed a cross-section of identifiable Palestinian sites that are rapidly disappearing under the pressures of real estate development and rising land values. Describing herself as someone who has “always been drawn to landscapes with secrets,” she photographs her subjects in the glaring mid-day Middle Eastern sun, unveiling “Arab landscapes” that remain.

The department will host Bright Thursday through Saturday, Oct. 13-15. The award-winning art educator, photographer and writer will visit classes and conduct critiques with advanced students.

“Clean-up Workers at the National Seashore,” photo by John Ganis

“Clean-up Workers at the National Seashore,” photo by John Ganis

• “Ruptures and Reclamations: The BP and Enbridge Oil Spills of 2010” by John Ganis in the Center for the Visual Arts Clement Gallery. The gallery is open Monday through Thursday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday from noon to 5 p.m.

His recent photographic series documents the effects of BP’s 2010 oil spill on the Gulf Coast and the reclamation efforts of the affected communities that followed. Approaching his subjects with some degree of irony and despair, Ganis’ work exhibits an abiding sensitivity to and respect for the coastal landscape and its inhabitants.

• “Carbon and Crust” by Marc Leone on the first floor of the Secor Building, 425 Jefferson Ave. The gallery is open Wednesday through Friday from noon to 5 p.m. or by appointment: 419.392.2022.

Leone’s richly textured mixed-media works derive their inspiration from geological sources. Treating his support surfaces like landscapes unto themselves, reclamation is suggested by his labor-intensive, destructive and reconstructive process of mark-making that traverses a range of drawing, painting and sculptural techniques.

“Crater 1001,” works on paper by Marc Leone

“Crater 1001,” works on paper by Marc Leone

There will be a reception and public lecture Friday, Sept. 16, from 6 to 8 p.m. in the Center for the Visual Arts Haigh Auditorium. Leone will discuss the relationships of his artwork to the natural, human and archaeological processes that act upon landscapes. A reception for the artist will follow. During his visit, he also will talk with students and conduct a workshop exploring his cross-media approaches to art.

In addition, there will be a “Landscape and Reclamation Symposium” Friday, Oct. 14, from 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. in Student Union Room 2592. This interdisciplinary symposium will bring together a range of artists and others to discuss the ethical, environmental and political implications of contemporary attitudes toward and uses of land. Bright will present the keynote address.

That Oct. 14 evening, the “Landscape and Reclamation” exhibits will be on the Arts Commission of Greater Toledo Gallery Loop. Call 419.254.ARTS (2787) for bus details.

For more information on these free, public events, contact Ben Pond, Center for the Visual Arts Gallery director, at benjamin.pond@utoledo.edu or 419.530.8347.

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